And it may prove to be worth the wait. TechCrunch contributor Steve Cheney (who nailed the timing of the Verizon iPhone last year), believes that a fall iPhone 5 launch makes LTE much more likely. He currently puts the odds at zero to ten percent for LTE if the iPhone 5 launched this summer (again, not happening), 50 percent if it comes in the fall, and 100 percent if it comes in January.

A fall timeframe would give Apple a more vetted and lower power Qualcomm chip for LTE, Cheney says. When the Verizon iPhone was unveiled in January, Apple COO Tim Cook addressed the LTE issue directly. ?The first generation LTE chipsets force some design compromises. Some of which we would not make,? he said. If Cheney is right, that may not be such an issue later this year.

Apple can release the iPhone 5 in June WITHOUT LTE, and then release LTE with iPhone 6. Other than tethering, is there a need for more throughput on the iPhone itself?

I think the key question is this:Does delaying iPhone 5 for the sake of LTE make for a better user experience?

I can’t think of a use case on the iPhone where having LTE over 3G HSPA would make enough of a difference to delay a key piece of hardware that consumers have been conditioned to expect at a certain time in the year.

I just grabbed the LTE bit but really I think that’s the least of it from a user perspective. As I type this it occurs to me that it would enable Facetime anywhere so it’s not that small a deal. We all seem to pick a single issue and drill down on it which is my frustration with the press as well. It’s the sum of the parts and boy are there a lot of them. I’d love to have the voice driven maps for instance. Others would flip out over the ability to download the latest Pixar film for their kids as their cross country road trip turns to agony.

The question of whether or not rumors of iPhone 5’s delay is FUD has been pretty well answered for me.

And it may prove to be worth the wait. TechCrunch contributor Steve Cheney (who nailed the timing of the Verizon iPhone last year), believes that a fall iPhone 5 launch makes LTE much more likely. He currently puts the odds at zero to ten percent for LTE if the iPhone 5 launched this summer (again, not happening), 50 percent if it comes in the fall, and 100 percent if it comes in January.

A fall timeframe would give Apple a more vetted and lower power Qualcomm chip for LTE, Cheney says. When the Verizon iPhone was unveiled in January, Apple COO Tim Cook addressed the LTE issue directly. ?The first generation LTE chipsets force some design compromises. Some of which we would not make,? he said. If Cheney is right, that may not be such an issue later this year.

Apple can release the iPhone 5 in June WITHOUT LTE, and then release LTE with iPhone 6. Other than tethering, is there a need for more throughput on the iPhone itself?

I think the key question is this:Does delaying iPhone 5 for the sake of LTE make for a better user experience?

I can’t think of a use case on the iPhone where having LTE over 3G HSPA would make enough of a difference to delay a key piece of hardware that consumers have been conditioned to expect at a certain time in the year.

I just grabbed the LTE bit but really I think that’s the least of it from a user perspective. As I type this it occurs to me that it would enable Facetime anywhere so it’s not that small a deal. We all seem to pick a single issue and drill down on it which is my frustration with the press as well. It’s the sum of the parts and boy are there a lot of them. I’d love to have the voice driven maps for instance. Others would flip out over the ability to download the latest Pixar film for their kids as their cross country road trip turns to agony.

The question of whether or not rumors of iPhone 5’s delay is FUD has been pretty well answered for me.

I think you make some great points and Apple is all about integration IMO. The release will come when they are technically mature enough to introduce to the mass market. Apple sells millions of units of phones per month so when they make a jump to the new technology they not only need to ensure that the technology is feasible but also that they can obtain ample supply of the new chips to ensure that a single part choice doesn’t limit production. Manufactures can put a nfc chipset in the Nexus from google knowing they plan to build 100K units per month while the manufacturing base for NFC builds. Apple needs to secure a much larger supply since they rely on a single design. This decision will tend to delay the introduction since the bleeding edge normally means no real supply yet. I think we can see this manifest itself in other areas. The rumors of Apple pre funding the supply chain for display technology points to Apple wanting to ramp before the manufactures were willing or able. As far as the iPhone 5 I see no short-term supply issues, but I think the Japanese Quake could impact the schedule and is a more likely cause then waiting for LTE or NFC.

Maybe we should make a diagram of “basic” iPhone features so we can see what one single upgraded would impact .

LTE would certainly make Back to my Mac, AirPlay off local network, and other Cloud streaming options more viable for users. If Cloud is what Apple will be pushing at WWDC, then it would make some logical sense to get its flagship mobile device working with those services as quickly and seamlessly as possible. As pointed out, people are kinda grumpy that they can’t use FaceTime any where any when. Imagine if Apple offered cloud file/music/video storage/sync but not over 3G.

Personally that feels a rather weak angle to me. Could services for Apple aren’t here yet, even AirPlay is in it’s infancy. If I had to put delay down to anything it would be an attempt at a case redesign. Antina-gate 1&2 was a bit of egge on Apple’s face despite similar “death grip” issues with competitor devices. An A5 chip and a new case… the second case in as many years would be enough.

I really do think the holdup is the case redesign. Apple would want to look ahead to NFC and LTE, and have a case that would work for them even if they aren’t in the iPhone 5. Afterall, who would want a FaceTime LTE call to cut out because you shift your grip slight .

Jim Dalrymple?s sources assure him that WWDC will be a software-only event that will not include the unveiling of any new hardware. The event will focus on Lion and, presumably iOS 5.? If the iOS launch is delayed until Fall, can one really expect the release of the iPHone 5 to occur before that time?

Why would iPhone 5 have to wait for iOS 5? Why couldn’t iPhone 5 have it’s own release event this summer?

Regarding iPhone 5 and iOS 5, I agree that iPhone 5 is very likely to appear first. It is still 3 full months until the end of June, assuming a June launch. That’s plenty of time to build up an inventory suitable for crushing demand.

I buy Starbucks daily using my iPhone and I’m addicted. I’m excited with the idea of getting rid of my wallet.

I’ll hold onto it for you :-D

Be forewarned that I also sport a manbag on occasion. All or nothing, Chas. :-D

HA,bring it on beeatch! Agree on the whole wallet thing. Hell, I look forward to the day of no credit card receipts and a much better way to track my expenditures which I assume would be part of NFC. Me, I’m not so good with paper but I does love me some digital.

My favoured reason for iPhone 5 delay is competitor wrong-footing.They will have got the idea of scheduling a new product to follow iPhone and tweaking the marketing and feature set to look its best. Product cycles and supply chain management must by now have fallen into step with iPhone. An unexpected change of iPhone 5 date will be severely vexing for competitors. But maybe FUD fear of a change is nearly as good?

I don’t believe Apple would introduce NFC and payment service at the same time. Or any new IOS feature the same day as new hardware. Possibly another reason for delayed hardware (get matching services ramped up first).

My favoured reason for iPhone 5 delay is competitor wrong-footing.They will have got the idea of scheduling a new product to follow iPhone and tweaking the marketing and feature set to look its best. Product cycles and supply chain management must by now have fallen into step with iPhone. An unexpected change of iPhone 5 date will be severely vexing for competitors. But maybe FUD fear of a change is nearly as good?

Launching a rumor that iPhone is delayed will do the trick. Apple wants to keep the competition guessing and off balance. Apple may have done just that through a credible blogger (Jim DairyQueen, or whatever) —we’re not talking WSJ here. Jim can be sacrificed at the altar of Apple confidentiality.

HA,bring it on beeatch! Agree on the whole wallet thing. Hell, I look forward to the day of no credit card receipts and a much better way to track my expenditures which I assume would be part of NFC. Me, I’m not so good with paper but I does love me some digital.

Chas, the manbag is protected with explosive pink dye if it falls into the hands of the wrong person. Do you have any pink shirts to go with your new accessory?

HA,bring it on beeatch! Agree on the whole wallet thing. Hell, I look forward to the day of no credit card receipts and a much better way to track my expenditures which I assume would be part of NFC. Me, I’m not so good with paper but I does love me some digital.

Chas, the manbag is protected with explosive pink dye if it falls into the hands of the wrong person. Do you have any pink shirts to go with your new accessory?

Funny! I’ll just bring it to Vegas and have Mark open it for me. I’m sure he’s got a few pink shirts lying around

I’m still betting on a July release. BTW, There’s no way they’re going to change a release date just to screw with competitors. Rumor, maybe…